Orlando Nightclub Survivor From Massachusetts Drums Up Gun Reform Support on Capitol Hill

Angel Colon, originally from Framingham, is working with lawmakers for new gun control standards

A Massachusetts native, who is a survivor of the Orlando nightclub massacre, was in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday to drum up support for new gun reform.

Angel Colon, who is originally from Framingham, says after what happened to him inside Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, he can't let another family go through that.

Colon was shot six times during the June massacre and now walks with a crutch and leg brace.

"I think having a voice and joining other people who have the same ideas, I think it helps prevent all the things that are going on around the world right now," Colon said.

While he's still in pain and just started walking a month ago, Colon is in Washington with New York Sen. Charles Schumer and Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey trying to lobby for legislation that would set new standards for who would be able to buy a gun or have access to one.

Colon said he will never forget that night after being on the floor and having other club goers running on top of him trying to escape.

"We need to save lives, we need to make sure that we're safe that not another family goes through what my family and what a hundred other families went through that night," he said. "It's something that I would never wish upon anyone in this world."

In June, Sen. Casey introduced the Hate Crimes Prevention Act.

It's a bill that would keep guns out of the hands of anyone convicted of a misdemeanor hate crime.

"Gun violence is not just an issue it's a reality it's part of people's," Casey said on Wednesday.

Gun advocates have opposed some gun control bills, saying they violate their Second Amendment rights. Democrats and Republicans have also blocked bills sponsored by each other over recent month.

"The more people we can get to have people join the campaign, the more results I think we can get," said Colon.

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